Despite the findings in an interim Defense Department report, sergeant's mother is suing Houston company providing contract services in Iraq

DONNA BORAK, Associated Press |
July 29, 2008

WASHINGTON — An interim Defense Department report has found no evidence KBR was involved in the death of at least one U.S. soldier electrocuted in Iraq.

The inspector general's report said that while electrical systems in Iraq were known to "pose a hazard to personnel," there is no evidence Houston-based KBR Inc. was aware of any life-threatening hazards at the Army barracks where Sgt. Ryan Maseth died.

Maseth, an Army Ranger and Green Beret from Pittsburgh, was electrocuted in January while showering.

Details of the IG report explain that an ungrounded water pump on the roof of Maseth's barracks failed and electrified the water pipes. Additionally, a circuit breaker failed because tar from roof repairs appeared to have leaked into the panel.

Maseth's mother, Cheryl Harris, has filed a lawsuit in Pennsylvania against KBR over her son's death. Her attorney, Patrick Cavanaugh, said the inspector general's conclusions do not change their position that KBR is at fault in Maseth's death.

"This report ignores critical evidence that we know exists and we stand by the papers we filed in court," Cavanaugh said after reviewing the IG report. He did not provide specifics on the overlooked evidence.

Maseth is not the only soldier to have died from a non-combat electrocution in Iraq. Staff Sgt. Christopher Lee Everett, of Huntsville, and 14 others also have been killed.

As of July 10, there have been 16 deaths — 10 soldiers, five Marines and a third-country contractor for the Defense Department — according to the interim IG report obtained Tuesday by the Associated Press. A final version of the report is due in November.

Of the 16 cases, more than half involved contact with power lines during military or construction operations, and the rest occurred while making electrical repairs or from improper grounding of electrical equipment, according to the report.

Four deaths appear to be related to wiring problems, and one of them involved work done by KBR, Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell said on Tuesday.

But he called it a "misperception" that facilities in Iraq are replete with electrical hazards.

"Some seem to believe that this department and one of the Army's lead logistical support contractors are so negligent or callous that we have failed to address these dangers," Morrell told Pentagon reporters.

KBR, which holds a multibillion-dollar contract to provide basic services including food and shelter for U.S. soldiers in Iraq, has repeatedly said it has "found no evidence of a link between the work" it was tasked to perform and the reported deaths.

KBR spokeswoman Heather Browne on Tuesday said the company had not seen the IG's report.

According to a memo released Tuesday by Republicans on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, KBR was tasked on Feb. 27, 2007, to perform maintenance at the complex in Baghdad where Maseth lived.

Under that order, the company was to provide "limited maintenance," which did not include inspections, preventive measures and upgrades, unless requested by the military.

Earlier this month, Gen. David Petraeus, the top commander in Iraq, ordered a safety review of all facilities in Iraq occupied by U.S. troops. The Pentagon's inspector general also is reviewing the deaths.

"This is a serious issue, and we have been treating it as such," Morrell said.

Lawmakers: 'We still need more answers'

But lawmakers, including Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., contend there also have been dozens of injuries and hundreds of fires from faulty electrical work, including reports of problems with troops being shocked as recently as three weeks ago.

"We still need more answers and still need better answers on the electrocution issue," Casey said Tuesday, adding that he has asked KBR and the Pentagon for more information. He is scheduled to testify before the House committee on the matter on Wednesday.

Casey and Rep. Jason Altmire, D-Pa., who met with KBR officials last week, said it remains unclear whether the military or the contractor is responsible for the deaths.

Earlier this month, former KBR electricians told a Senate panel investigating the electrocutions that the company used employees with little electrical expertise to supervise subcontractors in Iraq, and hired foreigners who couldn't speak English to do the work.